If privacy is now dead, then Warner Bros. Records might be digging up the corpse for another kill.  The WMG label, alongside a handful of other media companies that include Ustream, now-bankrupt Project Playlist, and Disney, have been accused of sinking nefarious cookies onto user systems.  That includes systems operated by kids, and a federal court action was recently filed by a group representing minors and their parents.

The Flash-based cookies, generated by technology partner Clearspring Technologies, enable data collection and tracking of surfing activity beyond the immediate sites in question.  That opens a broad range of data collection, including detailed demographic and health information.

Even worse, these cookies allegedly have the ability to regenerate upon deletion, a huge privacy override.  Those claims will be tested in court, though numerous references are being made to an earlier case involving Quantcast and a range of major media companies like Hulu, MySpace, and MTV.